Victor: Serene Meditation and Tea Hut by Jeffery Poss

In our busy world, people go to great lengths for serenity. What could be more relaxing than sipping tea in your own private tea house on a tranquil pond? Architect Jeffery Poss’ private Victor Meditation Hut is the ideal de-stresser, built on the edge of a quiet Illinois lake.

Appearing as if it were transported from Japan, the minimal tea hut was designed to reflect and coincide with the forested nature surrounding it. The vaulted roof has dual functions — reflecting the pond on the ceiling of the interior, and spouting rainwater back into the pond through the central channel on the exterior.

Further accentuating the meditative effects of water, Poss installed a low horizontal window near the floor of the hut, which provides a frame of the pond below. The interior of the hut is almost completely bare, save for tatami mats and a tea cabinet, which has a small opening window behind it that lets the gentle sound of the pond‘s fountain fill the small space. The birch floor of the hut island is glossed black, to evoke a pool of water within the structure itself, with the tatami mats acting as an island.

Poss is no stranger to meditative structures, having created similar projects in the past. Each celebrates the meditative effects of nature, but only Victor celebrates the calming zen of water.

5 thoughts on “Victor: Serene Meditation and Tea Hut by Jeffery Poss”

As a former student of Mr. Poss, it's refreshing to remember that there are actually a few understated professors of architecture who are as good as teachers as they are as professional architects. Great to see his work reaching a wider audience.

Looks like it is in a flood plane as well. Suspect that the use of pilons rather than foundation helped the case by keeping the footprint very small, as well as lifting the structure above the flood plane. The structure does not divert water or prevent natural flow. Bridges are constructed across wetlands using this method frequently, and many nature boardwalks around wetlands use the same approach. Suspect there is no plumbing, so no waste water issues. Can you tell?